


All those firsts

by SmileDesu



Category: New Avengers (Comics), Young Avengers (Comics)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-27
Updated: 2016-12-27
Packaged: 2018-09-12 15:34:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9078895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SmileDesu/pseuds/SmileDesu
Summary: Few things were happier than a young couple moving in together. Joyous were the times the parents stopped by, to offer their blessing and support. Solemn were the moments when you recalled those who could not visit. But what can you do other than live your life to its fullest, the way they wanted you to?





	

**Author's Note:**

> (Another) Annual memorial fic for my dad.

All in all, when Teddy and Billy broke the news to Jeff and Rebecca - that they were moving out to a place of their own - they couldn't blame the parents for their reactions. Heck, they were still coming to terms with it themselves, so when the news was received with apprehensiveness and practical concerns alongside the evident joy and pride, it was to be expected. It wasn't as though it was uncalled for, either, given it was a dubious gift from the ever dubious Roberto Da Costa.   
Whose name was on the lease? (Theirs)   
Who was paying the bills? (Roberto, at least for the next five years)   
What do they owe him for it? (Probably more than they could ever afford, despite all he owed them)  
And most importantly - when were they going to renovate?! ("No offense to Roberto, the place is _lovely_ \- but is it really _you_?")  
One moment, they're talking about it at the table, the next, they're going over strategies and designs, and before the boys knew what's what, they're back at the apartment, Jeff setting up a display cabinet or three while Rebecca's with Billy, going over a list of chores and things to check and phone numbers - just in case. It was the oddest mixture of acknowledging their independance and doting over them Teddy had ever seen, and when the day was done, the parents about to leave, and Rebecca was still hugging Billy and refusing to let go, Teddy was a bit grateful there was still a level or two of separation left between them compared to Billy. Only a bit, because when the commotion died down and they could hear themselves think, finally, Teddy heard that familiar echo that reminded him there was a third parent who should've rightly been there, but alas, would forevermore remain absent.  
  
–  
  
"UGH! I thought they'd _never_ leave!" came the tired, tormented groan once the dust cleared and enough time passed to make the possibility of the parents returning an unlikely one. Billy let himself fall on the couch, legs spread before him and the heels of his hands buried in his eyes. "Don't get me wrong, I'm glad they're helping and coming over as much as they do, it's good to have _someone_ around who knows the first thing about this, but argh, it's like I'm eight rather than eighteen, and need them to guide me by the hand with anything and everything. I mean, we kind of do?! But _still_... Aaah, this is worse than when we actually lived at home."  
  
The silence he was met with was unnerving and made Billy frown. He pushed himself up and looked for his boyfriend. "Tee? ...did I monologue while you were in the bathroom again?"  
  
The light behind that specific door was off, leaving Billy all the more confused until finally Teddy decided to let his location be known.  
  
"In here," he called, guiding Billy to one of the rooms they used for storage for the time being. Billy peeked in first, trying to gauge what was waiting for him, and found Teddy standing next to a box that curiously lacked the markings they put on anything they brought from home. Curiouser and curiouser, but Billy didn't comment about it yet, not liking what he found in Teddy's expression. It wasn't unfamiliar, but often came about whenever Teddy decided to stop bottling things up. On one hand, Billy was grateful; on the other hand, he braced himself before walking up to his partner.   
  
"There you are," he cooed as he pressed against Teddy's back, one hand squeezing his shoulder while the other arm went around his waist. Teddy leaned back, but his expression remained solemn.  
"What's up?"  
  
"Your parents are exhausting," came the initial response. It felt besides the point somehow, a chance to stall for time, but was undeniable just the same, so Billy nodded, poking Teddy's shoulder with his chin.  
  
"Thankfully, they have their own home to go back to. I do appreciate it? But yeah, it can be suffocating when they're here."  
  
"We'll have to move things around again," Teddy stated matter-of-factly before taking hold of Billy's hand over his stomach, one the mage had kept palm-upwards and fingers twitching for a while now.   
  
"That's what I have reality warping for - instant renovations. Can't help it if our vision doesn't fit theirs, but it's _our_ house."  
Despite his best attempts at keeping composed, Billy grinned goofily.  
" _Our house~_ "  
He squeezed Teddy's hand, making Teddy smile as well. That _was_ a nice thought, and left the air comfortable enough for Billy to - most likely - ruin it completely.  
"What's in the box?"   
  
Though Teddy's smile persisted for a short while longer, it wavered, then gradually faded away. Teddy let go of Billy's hand to hold the box with both hands, eyes set on the brown surface. Billy stayed close but moved to Teddy's side to better be able to read his face. It was a tired expression, and occasionally it seemed like he'd start crying. A shuddering breath later, Teddy spoke again, though he didn't answer the question, not directly, at least.  
  
"Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful your parents are over, I am, but it... all it does sometimes is remind me..."  
A heavy sigh left him, leaving his shoulders slumped. "I don't have anyone like that."  
  
Before Billy could reply, Teddy already continued. "I know! I know they're not here _just_ for you, that I'm practically a part of the family... I _am_ part of the family! I know that! But it's... not the same."  
  
The context that was finally provided, along with the way Teddy looked at the box and gently ran a hand over it, gave Billy a decent idea of what was in it, but he let Teddy say what he had to, suspecting there was more than that.  
  
"My very first apartment, moving out of the parents' house, starting out on my own-- on _our_ own... and _she_ 's not here for it."  
  
She - Sarah Altman. The woman who raised Teddy as though he was her own, and the one he called 'mom'. It's been over three years since her death.  
  
"It doesn't get easier, does it?" he whispered and turned away from the box and into Billy's embrace, silently accepting the physical show of support and comfort.   
  
"Might even get worse sometimes, I'm afraid," Billy replied and held Teddy for a while, as long as it felt like Teddy needed him to. A lone hiccupped sob escaped Teddy before he pulled back and clumsily wiped at his eyes.  
  
"I was at the storage unit this week, just going over some stuff, and I thought--" He took a deep breath and finally opened the lid. "Maybe we can put these up?"  
  
Billy brushed the back of his fingers against Teddy's cheek before turning to examine the box's contents. He already knew what to expect, but many of the items inside he actually recognized and remembered, a fact that brought about a pang of forlorn nostalgia. He couldn't begin to imagine what it did to Teddy.   
  
"Let's see what we have here. Clocks, we can always use more of those, CDs-- will have to go over them, see what's-- Nessie!" he exclaimed suddenly as he held up a ladle designed after the Loch Ness monster. "I always wanted one of these, we are _so_ keeping this! Ok, what's next, a bead curtain? Eh, we'll find a place for it-- ooooh, wind chimes. That'll be nice. Might help with magical meditation. You know, if I actually bothered with it for once."  
  
Billy went on with his little excited monologue, saying nothing of the fact Teddy was crying again. He simply wrapped an arm around his shoulders and pulled him close.  
  
"I think we can find room for all these things."  
  
"We don't _have_ to put up _everything_ \--"  
Teddy fell silent when a certain ladle was waved at his face.  
  
"Oh, none of that, it's already here and the place is big enough. We'll figure things out. Give me a heads up next time you go? I'll at least make proper box-space for it. Tardis-up the place or something."  
  
"Maybe even come with me? So we'll pick together?"  
  
The request was bashful and soft and made Billy smile before kissing Teddy's cheek. "You bet. But before all that - I think we can put this up right away. How about it?"  
  
'This' was a framed photo, one of a few in the box that caught Billy's attention. It showed Teddy and his mother, both beaming at the camera. Teddy took the photo and smiled weakly down at it.   
"We can. Thanks."  
  
"Don't thank me yet, we still need to think of the _where_."  
  
They found a good place on the wall in the living-room, one enough within sight but not gratingly so. Satisfying as the endeavor proved to be, it still felt like it wasn't enough, and so Billy waited until Teddy was out of memory lane before reaching for his hand.  
  
"I know she can't come and visit, Tee, but she's not _gone_. She's your mother. She's right there, in everything you do, or are."  
  
Teddy squeezed his hand back, and for a moment seemed emotional again, but in an undeniably better way than before. The way it broke into something cynical, however, made Billy brace for impact.  
  
"I'm the reincarnation of the first ever Skrull-Kree hybrid."  
  
Billy cringed. "Ok, that--"  
  
"I even have the sword!"  
  
"Ok, _other_ than _that_! _Maybe_. Did you _have_ to ruin my inspirational-motivational moment?!"  
  
"Mom always taught me to be honest."  
  
"Did she teach you to be a _jerk_?!"  
  
"I picked that up from _your_ side of the family!"  
  
"...can't argue with that," Billy concluded and drank in Teddy's laughter. So too did the woman in the picture frame, whose smile was, for but a moment, a bit wider.  
  



End file.
